Disordered eating, compulsive exercise and sport participation in a UK adolescent sample

The sport literature has produced equivocal results as to whether sport participation is a protective or risk factor for disordered eating. One mechanism by which it could be a risk factor is the increased drive or compulsion to exercise. This study compared the levels of disordered eating and compulsive exercise between adolescent sport and non-sport participants. A sample of 417 male and female adolescents, aged 14-16 years old, was recruited from UK secondary schools. Participants completed questionnaire packs that included the Eating Disorder Inventory (EDI), a measure of exercise behaviour, and the Compulsive Exercise Test (CET). Non-sport participants reported significantly greater body dissatisfaction than sport participants, and this was true for boys and girls. Significant group differences were also reported for many of the CET scales, with sport participants generally reporting greater levels of compulsive exercise than non-sport participants. Implications of these results are discussed.